The present invention relates to a low temperature showcase in which an opening in the front surface of a display chamber is openably closed with doors.
A conventional type of low temperature showcase is installed in a store such as a convenience store or a supermarket, and an opening in the front surface of an insulating box member having a display chamber in the showcase is closed with doors (e.g., glass doors) (e.g., see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-101075 (Patent Document 1)). Moreover, a machine chamber is disposed under the insulating box member, and a compressor, a condenser, a fan for the condenser and the like are arranged in this machine chamber so as to form a freezing cycle of a cooling device. Moreover, a cooler similarly forming the freezing cycle is disposed in the display chamber, and the inside of the display chamber is cooled to a predetermined low temperature by this cooler.
Moreover, a middle pillar is provided in the opening of the front surface of the display chamber. This middle pillar can closely be attached to a gasket attached to the inner surfaces of, for example, hinged double doors, whereby sealing properties in the display chamber during the closing of the doors are maintained.
Here, the structure of a conventional low temperature showcase 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 12. FIG. 10 is perspective view of the conventional low temperature showcase 100 from which doors are removed, FIG. 11 is a sectional plan view of the low temperature showcase 100, and FIG. 12 is an enlarged view of a circular D part of FIG. 11.
A main body of the low temperature showcase 100 is defined by an insulating box member 101 having an openable front surface, and a display chamber 102 is formed in the insulating box member 101. Moreover, a machine chamber is formed under this insulating box member 101, and the front surface of the machine chamber is openably closed with a front surface panel 103.
Hinged double doors 106, 106 are provided in an opening in the front surface of the display chamber 102. Gaskets 107 including magnetic members (magnets) 107M are attached to the back surface of the peripheral edge of the doors 106. Moreover, a middle pillar 105 is vertically provided in the form of a post which vertically extends in, for example, the center of a front surface opening 104 of the display chamber 102. Furthermore, a front surface 105A of the middle pillar 105 is closely attached to the gasket 107 on the rear surface of the side end of the glass door 106 on an open side by the magnet 107M provided in the gasket 107 of the glass door 106, whereby the display chamber 102 is closed.
Here, as shown in FIG. 12, the middle pillar 105 includes a rear panel 108 formed so as to vertically extend, a front panel 109 (made of a metal) and breakers 110, 110 which are made of a resin and which connect the panel 108 to the panel 109, and an insulating material 111 is foamed and charged into a space surrounded with the panels 108, 109 and the breakers 110, 110.
However, when the inside of the display chamber 102 is cooled, the middle pillar 105 itself and frames of the glass doors 106 are exposed to cold air. Therefore, dew condensation occurs on the front surface 105A of the middle pillar 105 and the surfaces of the gaskets 107 of the glass doors 106, because the surfaces come in contact with outside air. When such dew condensation occurs, a disadvantage is generated that fingers for opening/closing the glass doors 106 are wetted by dew condensation water attached to the middle pillar 105 and the like during the opening/closing of the glass doors 106 or that clothes are wetted by bounding dew condensation water during the opening/closing operation. Furthermore, there is generated a disadvantage that water droplets attached to the glass doors 106 due to the dew condensation drop down to wet the surface of an installation floor.
In consequence, to prevent the generation of the dew condensation water, an electric heater (a cord heater) is disposed so as to abut on the rear surface of the front panel 109 closely attached to the rear surface of the side end of the glass door 106 on the open side and so as to perform heat exchange between the heater and the surface of the front panel. When the electric heater is energized, the front panel 109 of the middle pillar 105 is heated to suppress the generation of the dew condensation on the glass doors 106, the gaskets 107 and the front surface 105A of the middle pillar.
However, the heating by such an electric heater is usually performed by the energization. Therefore, the power consumption of the showcase itself increases, and the steep rise of running cost is disadvantageously caused. Moreover, the electric heater is disposed in the insulating material 111 of the middle pillar 105, and hence when a defect such as the disconnection of the heater occurs during an operation step, repair cannot be performed.
In consequence, the present invention has been developed to solve the conventional technical problem, and an object thereof is to provide a low temperature showcase in which waste heat from a condenser and the like can be utilized by a simple constitution to effectively eliminate dew condensation on a middle pillar, particularly on a gasket of an upper part of a door.